Klarna, the Swedish fintech giant, is set to embrace cryptocurrency, as announced by CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski on X (formerly Twitter). This move marks a significant shift for one of the world's largest fintech companies, with 85 million customers.
Klarna is also actively preparing for a US initial public offering (IPO) in 2025. The company has already taken several significant steps towards this goal.
Siemiatkowski's announcement on X came with a touch of humor:
‘Ok. I give up. Klarna and me will embrace crypto! More to come.
Yes I know! This post will get a huge sigh and 2 views
But it still feels historic. Last large fintech in the world to embrace it. Someone had to be last. And that’s a milestone as well of some sort…’
The CEO was also actively seeking input from the crypto community on implementation strategies.
‘Wow. Will fill my todo list for some while… Promise to follow up with all the ideas and suggestions! Feel free to follow me and I will keep you in the loop’
Siemiatkowski also highlighted Klarna's substantial business volume, that according to him in another tweet could offer “tons of opportunities”: ‘We do 100 bn of volume a year. Over 85 users. More than million cards issued. Around 30% are pay in full and the rest is different forms of credit . And over half a million merchants’.
Siemiatkowski also tell that ‘Actually it was 3 great entrepreneurs introduced to me by Andrew Reed that made me see the light’. Andrew Reed is a partner at the Venture and Private Equity firm Sequoia Capital, where Reed has worked since 2014
This decision represents a notable turnaround for Siemiatkowski, who previously criticized cryptocurrencies. In a 2022 interview with Dagens Industri, he likened the industry to a Ponzi scheme and saw no relevant use cases for crypto or bitcoin.
The announcement has been met with enthusiasm from the crypto community. Suggestions from community members include:
Emelie Moritz, CEO of the Swedish crypto exchange Safello, invites in a tweet reply to a cooperation: ‘Safello is happy to help you transform to the future’.
We expect that more of the Nordic crypto platforms would love to help. In a recent video interview CEO Torbjørn Bull Jenssen in K33 for instance said: ´Norwegian banks stand in front of a tipping point on crypto’. Bull Jenssen also told Kaupr that K33 was in serious talks both with banks, neobanks and fintech companies. Another Nordic crypto platform is NBX, where the CEO, Stig Aleksander Kjos-Mathisen, a year ago expressed his ambitions after having received an e-money license: ‘NBX will become a bridge between crypto and classic finance’.
Klarna, the Swedish fintech giant, is set to embrace cryptocurrency, as announced by CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski on X (formerly Twitter). This move marks a significant shift for one of the world's largest fintech companies, with 85 million customers.
Klarna is also actively preparing for a US initial public offering (IPO) in 2025. The company has already taken several significant steps towards this goal.
Siemiatkowski's announcement on X came with a touch of humor:
‘Ok. I give up. Klarna and me will embrace crypto! More to come.
Yes I know! This post will get a huge sigh and 2 views
But it still feels historic. Last large fintech in the world to embrace it. Someone had to be last. And that’s a milestone as well of some sort…’
The CEO was also actively seeking input from the crypto community on implementation strategies.
‘Wow. Will fill my todo list for some while… Promise to follow up with all the ideas and suggestions! Feel free to follow me and I will keep you in the loop’
Siemiatkowski also highlighted Klarna's substantial business volume, that according to him in another tweet could offer “tons of opportunities”: ‘We do 100 bn of volume a year. Over 85 users. More than million cards issued. Around 30% are pay in full and the rest is different forms of credit . And over half a million merchants’.
Siemiatkowski also tell that ‘Actually it was 3 great entrepreneurs introduced to me by Andrew Reed that made me see the light’. Andrew Reed is a partner at the Venture and Private Equity firm Sequoia Capital, where Reed has worked since 2014
This decision represents a notable turnaround for Siemiatkowski, who previously criticized cryptocurrencies. In a 2022 interview with Dagens Industri, he likened the industry to a Ponzi scheme and saw no relevant use cases for crypto or bitcoin.
The announcement has been met with enthusiasm from the crypto community. Suggestions from community members include:
Emelie Moritz, CEO of the Swedish crypto exchange Safello, invites in a tweet reply to a cooperation: ‘Safello is happy to help you transform to the future’.
We expect that more of the Nordic crypto platforms would love to help. In a recent video interview CEO Torbjørn Bull Jenssen in K33 for instance said: ´Norwegian banks stand in front of a tipping point on crypto’. Bull Jenssen also told Kaupr that K33 was in serious talks both with banks, neobanks and fintech companies. Another Nordic crypto platform is NBX, where the CEO, Stig Aleksander Kjos-Mathisen, a year ago expressed his ambitions after having received an e-money license: ‘NBX will become a bridge between crypto and classic finance’.
